


Twisted Nerve

by AsagiStilinski



Series: Purge And Purify [1]
Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - The Purge Fusion, Auctions, Blood and Violence, Childhood Trauma, Crimes & Criminals, Dom Yami Yuugi | Atem, Dom/sub, Dubious Morality, Established Relationship, Flashbacks, Gun Violence, Handcuffs, Kaiba Seto Has Issues, Kaiba Seto Needs a Hug, Kidnapping, Law Enforcement, Light BDSM, Light Bondage, M/M, Moral Dilemmas, Murder, Police, Politics, Power Dynamics, Power Exchange, Power Play, Rescue, Rescue Missions, Running Away, Sub Kaiba Seto, Trauma, Violence, police officer Atem, police officer Joey Wheeler, police officer Yugi Muto
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-29
Updated: 2019-04-29
Packaged: 2020-02-09 23:36:18
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 20,303
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18648412
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AsagiStilinski/pseuds/AsagiStilinski
Summary: Seto Kaiba hates The Purge, and he never wants to be involved in itToo bad his fiance' ends up getting caught in the middle of one of the night's worst events...





	1. I Was As Pure As A River, But Now I Think I'm Possessed

**Author's Note:**

> A very long-winded "Fanart Monday" fic is here!
> 
> This started as a oneshot and then grew into a small multi-chapter with a sequel planned, I partly blame venom_for_free for that, but I can't complain, I'm excited for it, so buckle up kids, it's going to be a violent ride <3
> 
> Title Song: "Twisted Nerve" by Bernard Herrmann https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E84OWq6z3IQ
> 
> Chapter Title Song: "Haunting" by Halsey https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bjyGkvNUtRU

His fingers tapped on the wood

Once

Twice

A third time

Did he really want to do this?

 

_"The important thing is that you only do what you **want** to do,"_

_Seto glanced up, eyebrows raised, a smartass comment surely hanging on the tip of his tongue, ready to fire off at the closest occasion, but the other man was quick to stop him, a clearly disapproving look on his face_

_"And you **know** I'm not referring to things like eating healthy and being nice to Joey,"_

_The brunette's lips formed into something of a pout, though he wasn't serious about it, he was just teasing- for now, anyway_

_"All I'm saying is that when it comes to **this** , specifically, just... make sure that it's something you want to do before you do it, don't do it just for my sake, or because you think you have to, or for anyone else other than yourself,"_

_He gave a nod of understanding, legitimately taking his lover's words into carefull consideration_

_"You don't even have to decide right now, if you want to take some time-"_

_"I don't," Seto said quickly, his decision already made as he gently curled his fingers around his boyfreind's, a gentle smile on his face as he squeezed his partner's hand_

_"I've made up my mind, this is what I want to do,"_

 

"You don't have to do this!!"

Exhaling slowly, Seto's hands tightened around the handle of the bat, his fingers tapping breifly against the wood again as he stared down at the monster in front of him

"No I don't," he said slowly, tightening his grip hard enough that he could feel the pressure building in the center of his palms

"But I want to,"

And with that, he swung the bat down as hard as he could, letting it collide with the man's skull, a sickening smack echoing through the room, the sound of bone cracking against wood infiltrating the otherwise empty house

He panted quietly, his entire body shaking for a moment as he stared down at the aftermath of what he had done

His hands loosened around the bat, but he refused to drop it, simply heaving in breath after shaking breath, blinking back tears, before moving forward and pulling the man's cell phone and wallet out of his pocket, swallowing tightly and shoving both in his own pocket before heading listlessly out of the house

He felt weirdly hollow, strangely.... _not there_ anymore

It was almost like that glorious space in his mind that he entered when he was with his boyfreind but ... but _not_

This wasn't good, it wasn't comforting, it wasn't happy, it was just... bad

It was floaty and empty but it was a _bad_ sort of floaty and empty, a little more like how he felt after a panic attack

It was just.... _hollow_

He carefully lifted the bat over his shoulder as he exited the house, making his way to his car as he watched blood drip off of his body, off of his.. _weapon_... as he walked

"Fuck..." he breathed quietly, his hands still shaking as he reached into the pocket for his keys

"I should have worn my Harley Quinn jacket..."

 

_"You have a Harley Quinn jacket?"_

_Seto glanced up from his laptop, eyes flicking over to where his boyfreind was standing, holding the jacket out in front of him in amusement_

_"Gag gift from Mokuba, it's a long story,"_

_"Oh really? What a shame, I was just about to ask you to wear it, it'd look so **cute** on you!"_

_Feeling heat rise to his cheeks, the CEO cleared his throat, sitting up a little bit straighter and setting his laptop aside_

_"You.... think so?"_

_"I **know** so," his boyfreind beamed, his eyes lit up, happiness brimming in his expression as he hurried over and flopped down on the bed, the mattress bouncing beneath him as he leaned in a little bit closer_

_"There's just one problem," he noted, laying the jacket out nicely on his lap and pointing to the gold woven "Property Of The Joker" embroidered on the back with both index fingers_

_"I think this is supposed to say 'Ivy',"_

_"Gods, you're so stuck on that," Seto snickered playfully, carefully shifting the laptop to the nightstand beside him to get it out of the way_

_"Am I wrong?" his boyfreind asked, **clearly** offended_

_"Oh no Sir, not at all," Seto smirked, reaching out to wrap both hands around the smaller man's waist and gently but firmly tugging him forward, into his lap, earning a slight laugh from the other man as his arms wrapped around Seto's neck in response_

_"That's what I like to hear,"_

_Seto didn't respond verbally, instead merely pressing a few trails of kisses down the column of his lover's neck_

_It was passionate and fun at first, but soon slowed into something much more serious and thought-filled_

_"I .. I was invited to a party ... earlier today,"_

_"Oh? That sounds like fun,"_

_Frowning, Seto pulled back a little bit more, his gaze darkened and meloncholy now_

_"A... Purge... party," he corrected slowly, watching his lover's expression fall as well, clearly nothing else needed to be said to get the message across_

_"Oh...."_

_After a beat of silence, his boyfreind shifted, one hand moving up to cup Seto's cheek, dragging his thumb in slow, carefull strokes against his upper cheekbone_

_"And? In what creative avenue did you say 'no' this time?"_

_"I didn't, I just... walked off, if people don't know I hate that night by now, they're never going to get it," he said with a loud sigh, closing his eyes and letting his head fall forward, resting against the soft, slender shoulder in front of him_

_"I see.... yet, it seems that you're troubled by this decision,"_

_"Yep..."_

_"Why? Are you having second thoughts?"_

_"Not at all," Seto promised firmly, his eyes closed, the emotional and mental exhaustion of this entire incident was catching up with him- well, as if it hadn't already been there to begin with_

_"I just... I'm just so fucking tired of having to tell people 'no', I feel like a teenager again.... back when I had first taken over Kaiba Corp... before anyone took me seriously, and I had to scream everything I wanted to say at the top of my lungs before I'd even get the tiniest **hint** of respect.... it lasted for a wile, you know, I'd say something and people would take me at face value for it, I wouldn't have to repeat myself or my veiwpoints for anything, except maybe when speaking of my sexuality, though I think that's less to do with me and more to do with bisexual erasure,"_

_"Look at you, using the social big words," his boyfreind teased playfully, wich succeeded in turning the depressed look on Seto's face into something far more deadpanned_

_It was progress, he considered_

_" **Anyway**... I just... I had some respect for a little wile, you know? I really did, and then this ... this fucking abomination came along and I think I lost it,"_

_"Seto, there are still plenty of people who respect you," his lover said seriously_

_"But not like there used to be," Seto corrected_

_"I think now... alot of the old fucks who had gained respect for me for a couple of years... they're right back to thinking I'm an ignorant child, all because I refuse to kill people for fun, it sickens me, fuck... **fuck**! You know? It just... it makes me so angry.... it makes me so fucking mad... I hate it, all of a sudden I'm right back to having to plead my fucking case just because I don't want to conform to what the other rich assholes in this world are all doing, as if I don't already have to defend myself enough as it is just because I like cocks, now there's this too! And you know, since I started being so **vocal** about it-"_

_"You mean sense the very beginning?"_

_"-Right, I feel like the government has been crawling further and further up my ass,"_

_"They probably have been, they **want** people to participate in this, after all,"_

_"I know, I just... I just hate it... I hate all of it... I just wish people would leave me the fuck alone, they're the ones killing people and yet somehow I'm the one getting raked over the coals,"_

_By now, Seto's face had been buried in his lover's shoulder again, his arms wrapped tightly around the other man, his jaw tense and his chest heaving_

_He felt like he could cry_

_He was so damn stressed and frustrated and upset... crying really sounded like a releif_

_But he wouldn't, Seto had to break **alot** harder to allow himself that kind of vulnerability- if you could even call it "allowing" when it was always so completely impossible to control_

_"I know sweetheart... I know," his boyfreind murmured softly, one hand rubbing his back, the other moving down to gently tug on his partner's hair, forcing the CEO to raise his head, despite the clear fact that he didn't want to do so_

_"Seto, who do you belong to?"_

_He was quiet for a moment, before answering with confidence- if not a bit of shyness_

_"You, Pharaoh,"_

_"That's right, so who's opinion matters to you?"_

_"Your's, Pharaoh,"_

_"Exactly, remember my darling, as long as you're pleasing me, you're doing the right thing, and you know how I feel about that gods-awfull night,"_

_Seto nodded slowly, he knew alright_

_His pharaoh hated the purge almost as much as Seto did...._

_"Then it doesn't matter what anyone else thinks, does it? And it doesn't matter what they try to make you do, or how they try to make you feel, does it?"_

_"No Sir, all that matters is that I've pleased you,"_

_"Good boy, you're so good at this Seto," he promised with a purr, giving Seto a soft, breif kiss, hugging him tightly, pressing forward to gently nock the CEO onto his back against the mattress and stroking his fingers affectionately through his partner's hair_

_"I love you Seto, you know that, don't you?"_

_"I do... and I love you, I love you so much... I love you **so much**... **Atem**....."_

 

"Atem..."

He still felt so damn ... _raw_ about all of this, that his throat hurt just to say the name

He honestly would have been exhausted if not for the adrenaline pumping through him

He knew that he needed to focus, that he couldn't afford any other distractions

He didn't know how much longer it would be until the auction began, he had that fucker's phone that he could check the time on- as he had lost his own some time previously- but he didn't feel like wasting the energy

He didn't have the time either

He just knew that he needed to get to the peir

He'd have to get to the peir sooner rather than later

He wasn't sure what the conditions were, if Atem was being tortured or not in the time it would take for him to get there and rescue him, or if he was going to be auctioned off first or last or....

Or if he already had been....

Swallowing tightly, his heart hammering in his chest, Seto tightened his grip on the steering weel, trying to keep himself somewhat calm, despite how completely on edge he felt

If he could just focus on getting to the peir and somehow rescuing Atem....

He sped around the corner, trying to ignore all of the damage and chaos that was littering the street around him

There were fires here and there, sprouting up in crashed cars and eating away evidence of other crimes

There was screaming and shouting everywhere, the sounds of gun fire, both slow and fast, clearly coming from different weapons at different times

People running around in the streets here and there, though this particular area seemed mostly empty

Good, it would mean less distractions, less obstacles to fight through, and a shorter amount of time that Atem would be in peril

Atleast...

Until he drove a couple of yards further up, dread quickly sinking down into the base of his spine, pooling in his belly, and spreading like a poison through every single vein as he stared at the creepy image in front of him

There was a line of fucking lunatics dressed as clowns in front of him, making a human chain, clearly trying to stop him from going any further

Each of them was holding some sort of cheap weapon, ranging from a hammer to a hacksaw and various other hardware tools

Great.... just great....

They obviously thought that he was going to stop just because they were in his way

He could stop, and if this was any other day, during any other circumstances, he would stop- not a question or a doubt in sight

But....

He inhaled slowly, pictures of Atem's face flashing through his mind, the feeling of the other man's skin against his skin, the taste of him still lingering in Seto's mouth, his scent, his voice...

The knowledge that right now, at that very moment, he could be getting fucking _tortured to death_

He didn't need another moment to consider

He didn't need to hesitate any longer

He stepped on the gas pedal as hard as he could, his hands tight against the weel, and plunged forward

He always _had_ hated clowns

 

_"What are these for?"_

_"Just... because I love you," Seto mumbled quietly, his face bright, cherry red, his shoulders shrugging as he looked down at his keyboard_

_He didn't really need to look at the keyboard by this point, he was so used to the layout that he could easily type blindfolded and still be nearly flawless_

_But he couldn't look at Atem's face just yet_

_The other man seemed utterly **thrilled** however, eagerly leaning down and giving his lover a big kiss to the cheek as he hugged the enormous bouquet of sunflowers close to his chest_

_"You are the absolute **sweetest** , and I'm lucky to have you," he said with honesty, his expression still stretched out into a bright, seemingly endless smile_

_"Isn't that usually my line?" Seto questioned, finally glancing up from his work, just in time for Atem to kiss his lips- loudly, dramatically, clearly more for a show of enthusiasm than affection_

_But Seto didn't mind_

_Any kiss from Atem was a good kiss_

_"Seriously though Seto? You sent a **hundred** sunflowers to the precinct for me for absolutely no reason? Who the fuck **does** that?"_

_"I do that, obviously," the CEO replied with a shrug, watching as Atem leaned down to inhale the sweet floral scent provided by the bouquet_

_He only had a small batch of flowers with him, maybe ten or so, a mere fraction of what Seto had sent, but those were probably the ones Seto had instructed specifically to deliver to Atem's arms- because he wanted to be absolutely **sure** that some shmuck at the police station didn't take the opportunity to make off with the flowers instead_

_How or why anyone would try to steal a hundred sunflowers was, admittedly, a bit beyond him, but he had actually heard stranger from Atem's job_

_"I was honestly hoping you could come by for lunch, there's a magnificent ramen place that just opened over by the game shop, I thought you might like to try it,"_

_Atem's face fell, and Seto already knew his answer_

_"Raincheck, I **swear** , it's just... remember those crazy ... spooky clown sightings from a few years back?"_

_"You mean the shit that happened in the Americas and Europe? Yeah, what about it?"_

_"Well apparently Japan is now having some of our very own, Yugi and I have to investigate, it's been marked as a high-priority case so that we can- theoretically- nip this in the bud before the press hears about it and people start panicking,"_

_"I understand that," Seto said with a small, quiet sigh, leaning back in his chair_

_"I just hope that raincheck happens sooner rather than later,"_

_"It will," Atem promised, leaning close to kiss his nose_

_"I swear it,"_

 

In all honesty, Seto was relieved that the creepy clown crazies moved out of the way at the last minute

He wouldn't have wanted even more deaths on his shoulders, or the blood on his car, but...

At the end of the day, there was _nothing_ he wouldn't do to save Atem

If it came down to it, Seto would have plowed through that line of lunatics without any regrets, if it meant the difference between getting Atem back alive or- .....

No...

No he wasn't even going to think about the alternatives

Swallowing tightly, he tried to calm the shaking in his hands, tried to push back the anxiety and panic that wanted to flow through him

Atem had spent so much time training him, teaching him how to cope with things, how to process things, how to be ... _better_... than he had been when they first met

He wasn't going to let all of that go to waste now over some fucking clowns

The peir....

The peir....

How far away was it from here?

Maybe another twenty minutes....

_Shit_

Just as he was preparing to try taking a short cut, the sound of tires popping echoed through his ears and the car suddenly started to sputter and spin out of control, the realization quickly hitting him that his tires had just been torn to shreds

There must be a nail-track or something in the road....

_SHIT!!_

He hurried to slam on the brakes, but it was too late to save much of the car, and before he knew it, the airbags were deployed, and he could rather safely assume that his car was too wrecked to continue making the journey to the peir

Frustrated, he forced the airbag out of his way and hurried to open the car door

His body hurt from the impact, he could feel it in his shoulders, his neck, fuck... his _face_....

He was mildly amazed that he hadn't broken his nose or something, but to be fair, the impact hadn't been all that bad, airbags were known for doing some damage but apparently he got off easy tonight in particular

Still....

He was definitely sore, rubbing his face as he climbed out of the car and came face to face with a little group of masked bandits

Fucking perfect

There were three of them- two male and one female, seemingly, all wearing creepy rubber masks...

Great

"Can I help you with something?" he asked flatly, watching in utter boredom as one of the males pulled a gun on him

And this encounter just kept getting better and better

"You're Seto Kaiba.... right?" asked the male without the gun

"Thought you were an anti-Purger,"

"You thought right, I'm not out here to purge, it's a long story,"

Ok, it probably wasn't the _smartest_ idea to admit to being an anti-Purger right in front of three very clear pro-Purgers, but Seto had always been known for sticking to his beleifs, even in the most damning of situations

"That's alot of blood on you for someone who isn't purging," noted the female, twirling a dagger between her fingers as she took a step closer to him

"I told you- long. story."

"Look, what does it matter if the fucker is anti-purge? He's still got money! Get his fucking wallet!" shouted the one with the gun

A real charmer that one seemed to be

"Shut up you idiot! Do you have any idea how much people would pay for him!? Japan's most vocal anti-Purger... there are alot of people who would pay way more than what's in his wallet for a chance to gut him like a fish," the female noted joyfully

"Not even just that," noted the other male

"Kaiba Corp pissed alot of people off when they went from weapons to games, and this fucker.... he's _everything_ most pro-Purgers hate, he's got political veiws that really ruffle alot of feathers and he never shuts up about them... and he's fucking a dude, that alone is worth plenty, there are alot of people who'd love to just cut his dick off,"

"Gee, how magnificently 1952 of you, why don't you tie me to a stake and start telling people I'm a witch wile you're at it?" Seto spat

But none of them seemed to be listening to him, or paying any attention to him if they were

"Alot of people say he's ruining Japan, do you have any idea how much they'd pay to get rid of him? Fuck... we could post on Twitter that we have him and be richer than he is by midnight!! Not to mention all of the other rich fucks who hate him for one reason or other, this guy probably has more enemies than Taylor Swift!!"

" _What_? That's the worst comparison I've ever heard," Seto grumbled

If they were going to have an enemy-measuring contest the least they could do was put him with someone substantial!

Taylor Swift may have gotten alot more controversial since her "Fearless" days but he'd hardly say she was crawling with "enemies"

"You're right...." the one with the gun finally mused, chuckling lowly against the rubber mask and taking a step closer, forcing Seto to lean back instinctively against the car

He nodded at the female and Seto watched with a grimace as she pulled a pair of handcuffs out from a fanny pack she was wearing, twirling them on her finger playfully

Usually he was thrilled to see handcuffs, but not this time...

"Alright, now put your hands out in front of you, nice and slow,"

 

_"Alright, now put your hands out in front of you nice and slow,"_

_Obediently, Seto followed the instruction, staring up at Atem with nothing but trust and warmth in his eyes as the smaller man took the handcuffs off of his belt and stepped closer_

_"Good boy... do you know why I want your hands in front of you this time sweetheart?"_

_"No Sir,"_

_It was their first time playing with bondage, Atem insisted on taking it easy even though Seto had made it explicitly clear that he was down for getting tied up to the full extent of what his master desired_

_But Atem was...._

_Atem was **like that**_

_He was **good** like that_

_He was a good dom, a good boyfreind, a good everything, and he made Seto feel loved and safe and happy, he restored some of the faith in humanity that Seto had lost so fucking long ago..._

_There is **nothing** Seto wouldn't do for this man_

_"My reason is two-fold, my beloved," Atem hummed casually, slowly placing one silver ring around his wrist and snapping it into place_

_"First, to let you wade into these waters slowly, I know you're excited, but if you rush in too fast, you may have a very seriously negative reaction, you aren't used to letting go of control, the best way- the **safest** way- to get you adjusted is to ease you into things, by allowing you a little bit more freedom this first time, I can make sure that you're comfortable enough to go a step further, there's less likelihood that you'll panic,"_

_"And the second reason, Your Majesty?" Seto asked curiously, watching the other "bracelet" lock onto his other wrist, successfully binding his hands together with a pretty silver chain_

_"So that you can see with your own eyes how much you belong to me," Atem smirked, taking Seto's hands in his and giving them a squeeze_

_"Look at your wrists Seto, look at the gift you're giving me, and truly acknowledge this vulnerability, fully acknowledge that you have given yourself to me now, that you are mine, my pretty, perfect gift... **mine** and mine alone, let yourself soak in the fact that I own you now, and that nothing and no one can ever change that,"_

_When he put it that way, it nearly brought Seto to tears_

_He had never felt so warm and cared for and **loved** before_

_He felt..... **precious**_

_Like a rare gem or gold or one of those tiny "designer" dogs that celebrities carried around in their purses_

_It was strange, he was so much bigger than Atem was, but like this, he felt almost **tiny** , as though Atem could envelope him in his arms and cover every last inch of his body, sheilding him from the outside world, like a guardian angel...._

_"Seto? .. Are you ok?"_

_Nodding quickly, Seto inhaled and forced the emotions back, forced them to settle a little so he wouldn't make a fool of himself right there in his very first scene_

_"I'm perfect... may I kiss you please, Pharaoh?"_

_Atem looked utterly **delighted** , grinning so wide that his eyes crinkled up and Seto could see the laughter lines just beginning to form in his otherwise young face_

_"You can always kiss me baby, you don't ever have to ask permission for that,"_

_Surging forward, Seto caught Atem's lips in his own, sighing in happiness and contentment, feeling more happy and at peace than he had ever felt, it was as if a one-billion pound weight had been lifted off of him and gods... **gods**...._

_Seto wasn't a religious man but if Atem told him he was a god he would fall to the ground and worship at his alter until the day he fucking died_

_"Such a good boy," Atem purred, pulling back and cupping his lover's face, his expression as warm and loving as ever_

_"Aren't you, Seto? Now... lay down ok? Try to breathe and relax so I can take you even higher, be a good boy for me, ok?"_

 

Swallowing tightly, Seto obediently held his hands out, biting his tongue, trying not to fight

He wasn't sure how to get out of this just yet, and if he got himself killed, who would rescue Atem?

"Good," chuckled the man with the gun

"Now be a good boy and-"

Hearing those words was like flipping a switch in Seto's brain, and without a second of thought, he lunged forward, punching the asshole in the face and hearing the gun go off as he plunged to the ground

Without a second thought, Seto slammed his foot down on the guy's gut, spun around to punch the other man- who had started to charge him- and ducked down from the girl who was making to attack him

Seto hurriedly ripped the gun away from the bastard on the ground as he attempted to shoot again, he could feel a harsh sting against his arm but he ignored it, there was so much pure rage pumping through him now that he could feel the acid in his stomach starting to increase

He wrapped his finger around the trigger, ready to blow out the brains of the fucking scumbag who **DARED** speak to him the way his pharaoh did, but he didn't get the chance

Before he could pull his trigger, someone else pulled their's- three times at that

The masked figures around him fell still and silent, and Seto was left with an odd feeling of releif .. and regret

Releif, that he could move on with his night and get away safely from these assholes, get back to his mission of saving Atem

... And regret, that he didn't get to murder that one bastard himself

Seto had never been a violent person, in fact he loathed violence, he had always made that clear, always been the first one to speak out against guns and gangs and the fucking _Purge_...

But in that moment, he really, _really_ wanted to murder that guy

That complete stranger who Seto didn't know, who may have had a family, may have had a kid, may have had a decent life....

And Seto had _wanted_ to take it away, just because he was so fucking angry

What was this night doing to him....?

Finally, he jerked his head up, glaring at the figure in front of him who had just fired the gun

It was hard to make out any details, they were somewhat shorter than Seto was but that was the most he could tell, what with a dark purple cape resting over their body, it wasn't until the figure raised a tan-skinned hand to pull their hood off and reveal bleach blonde hair and soft violet-grey eyes that Seto could even take a guess at their gender

....

Violet-grey...

Atem's partner had violet eyes too, how strange....

"You're hurt," the stranger noted, sliding his gun down into the holster on his waist and shifting his cape back, revealing a slender form beneath

"Allow me to help you,"

"I think you already helped, thanks," Seto muttered, not entirely sure if he was being sincere or sarcastic at this point

The stranger looked utterly unamused and took a step forward, clearly not giving a damn about the fact that Seto was holding a gun

"That bullet grazed your arm, you don't feel much now because of the adrenaline, but trust me, that _will_ wear off, and you _will_ regret not taking my help,"

"Thanks, but I have to be somewhere, my fiance' was kidnapped and I have to get to the peir before he gets- .. hurt,"

He wasn't going to say "killed"

Or "tortured"

Or "raped"

Or any of the other words that made him feel like his entire world was collapsing around him

"The peir...? .. I think I can help you with that, you want to get there before the auction starts? Come with me,"


	2. It's Not Like Me To Be So Mean, You're All I Wanted

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter Title: "Hostage" by Billie Eilish https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=skHbZBsS7hM

Alarmed, Seto immediately put away any hesitation he had at following the stranger and nearly ran towards him, following him through the empty street, towards a van in an ally just a few yards away

This would usually be where Seto's better instincts kicked in, but there was a bright green cross on the side of the van and he allowed himself to relax a little

The stranger was operating one of the free-lance med vans that drove around helping people all night.... so _that_ was why he gave a shit about Seto's arm

That still left some unanswered questions though

"Who are you? How do you know about the auction? Are you attending? Are you going to the peir? Are you participating in the Purge or are you just .. helping? How did you know I was here?"

"Wow, you talk alot more than the media would make us think you do," the stranger snorted, opening the back of the van to reveal that he, apparently, had help in his mission

There was a beautifull young woman sitting in the back, dressed in scrubs, and in the driver's seat was a tall man with a shaved head, all but for the long ponytail in the back

What an odd little gang

"I'm trying to get to my fiance' so yeah, forgive me if I want some answers before I literally get in the fucking strange van in the ally on _Purge night_ ,"

"Relax, Mr. Kaiba, we're only here to help," the woman said softly, extending a hand towards him

He didn't take it

"I am Ishizu Ishtar, this is my brother Marik, our other brother, Odion, is driving, we're just trying to help people, you need to get to your fiance'? Let us take you to him,"

Marik climbed into the van, and slowly, Seto followed

"You know who I am?" he asked a beat later, watching with hesitance as Marik closed the van door and took off his cape

"Sure, you're Seto Kaiba, Japan's loudest anti-Purger, how could we _not_ know?"

Again with the anti-Purge shit...

"You know I actually _am_ famous for other things than having common sense," he bit irritably, tensing when Ishizu peeled his coat off and started to roll up his sleeve, but forcing himself not to jerk away from her

"We know, but we don't care about any of the other stuff, we're anti-Purgers too, you're basically our mouth peice," Marik noted, leaning back as the van finally began to move

"Great, happy to be of service, are you going to answer any of my questions now?"

His patience was wearing more and more thin as the moments ticked by and he was starting to feel almost ill from it

"Alright... yes, we're going to the peir, we didn't know anything about you being out tonight, we just saw you on our way to the auction and wanted to help, yes I'm attending, not to hurt anyone, but to _help_ , we know about the auction because we attend every year to help smuggle people out, and again, we're anti-Purgers, so no, we don't participate, does that about cover it?"

Reluctantly, Seto nodded, exhaling shakly and flinching as Ishizu sprayed some sort of medication on his wound

"Why .. do you do all of this? Put yourselves at risk just to help a bunch of complete strangers?"

"Because it's the right thing to do, we're trying to make a difference here and get people to stop this insanity, but we don't have the media power that you do to help us so we have to beat the streets, it's a pain in the ass but... if we can atleast make a _tiny_ difference, it's better than nothing,"

Seto was actually starting to feel a bit bad now

He had always wisked away his loved ones to another country when it came to these damn nights, instead of sticking around, he wondered if he had been wrong all that time....

 

_"Guess where we're going next month?"_

_Atem glanced up from his book, head tilting curiously as he leaned over the back of the couch_

_"Coachella?"_

_"What? No, I don't even - ... what?"_

_"Relax, I'm kidding, **prude** , where are we going?"_

_Seto huffed, holding out a broucher towards his lover_

_"Oh!! New Zealand!!!"_

_"Yep, home of the hobbits,"_

_"That sounds fantastic sweetheart, what's the occasion?"_

_"New Zealand isn't run by fucking morons, that's the occasion,"_

_Immediately, Atem's expression flickered to something more melancholy, clearly understanding what Seto was saying_

_"That night already... right...."_

_"Don't get too down, we're leaving the day before, just you, Mokuba, and I, we can relax for a week, keep the TVs off, get some sunshine an-"_

_"What do you mean, 'you, Mokuba, and I'? What about Yugi? Or Joey? Or his grandfather? Or-"_

_"Atem, I have **one jet** , I can't take the entire fucking country with me,"_

_He didn't say it anger, but actually... in sadness_

_Seto **wished** he could take the entire country with him, he **wished** that Japan had never legalized this peice of American idiocy to begin with, but here they were_

_Now all he could do is hold onto his brother and his fiance' as tightly as he could and drag them off to one of the few countries with half a brain left until the chaos blew over_

_"I am not going ANYWHERE without Yugi, you egg, and he will go nowhere without his boyfreind and his grandfather, Joey will go nowhere without his sister an-"_

_"How many seats.. do you think this will take then? I have twelve on the plane, just twelve Atem,"_

_Seeming to settle a little bit, Atem relaxed back on the couch and opened the broucher_

_"Twelve will do, make sure you have the extra hotel rooms reserved, I'll call Yugi and let him know about our plans,"_

_Seto sighed, mumbling a "Yes Sir", and pulled out his phone_

_He really didn't have a problem with taking more people conceptually, he just knew from experience that the more people you tried to herd into a trip, the more likely something would inevitably go wrong_

_Incidentally, that was exactly what happened...._

 

If they hadn't been stuck fussing over those other idiots, he and Atem would be in New Zealand right now, making love in a presidential suite somewhere and ignoring how fucked up the rest of the world was

It was his fault...

He never should have told Atem about their plans so early, he should have just woken him up yesterday morning, packed a bag for him, and dragged him to the jet without a word until they were officially flying over international waters

Atem may have hated him for it, but atleast he'd be safe

"Kaiba?"

Jerking his head up, he glanced back at Marik, only then realizing he hadn't heard a word that he had said

"What?"

"I asked how your fiance' got caught up in the auction,"

"Long story," he grumbled back, exhaling as Ishizu finished wrapping up his arm

"Well, it'll be another ten minutes until we get to the peir, want to give it a try anyway?"

Not really, but... he supposed part of him owed Marik for his help....

And he always did hate being in debt

"Atem did something fucking stupid,"

It wasn't a lie, really

But looking back on it, Seto started to realize more and more that Atem wasn't the only one who had made a stupid decision...

 

_"All I'm saying is that you can't judge a book by it's cover, I know it **seems** boring but it isn't!"_

_Seto had long since tuned out of this conversation_

_He had been listening to Atem's freinds chatter at eachother for the better part of half an hour and his social tolerance was wearing thin_

_Atem had always compared his social stamina to a cookie jar, once the jar was empty, Seto was out of patience_

_It wasn't an anger thing, it was just..._

_He only had so much energy for dealing with strangers- or really anyone who wasn't Atem or Mokuba- before he was simply exhausted, and now was definitely one of those times_

_For Seto, socializing was like stepping into a cage with an angry alligator, and even if he got out of it unscathed, he was always exhausted at the absolute least_

_"Are you ok sweetie?" Atem asked gently, one hand on Seto's thigh, as he leaned closer and rested his head on his lover's shoulder_

_"I'll be fine, I just want to go," Seto mumbled back_

_He still had to tolerate an eleven hour flight with these idiots, and he was practically itching to just hurry up and get on the plane_

_He not only was anxious to get away from all of these people- the jet did have a small bedroom where he could hide out with Atem for the majority of the flight- but he was mostly just eager to get away from Japan_

_The Purge may not be until tommorrow evening, but there was no such thing as getting away from the potential of that damn night too early in his opinion_

_"I know baby, we'll be gone soon, I promise," Atem swore, giving his lover's shoulder a squeeze before leaning closer and kissing the edge of Seto's jaw_

_Seto sighed quietly and leaned back against his seat, closing his eyes for a moment_

_He wondered if he could sleep on the flight...._

_"Oh! Yugi is coming! ... And he's ... alone...."_

_Cracking his eyes open, Seto stared out the car window, finding with surprise that, indeed, Yugi was alone_

_They had been waiting outside of this damn apartment building for the past fifteen minutes under the guise of Yugi picking up his boyfreind, so why was he alone...?_

_Evidently, everyone else had noticed the strange occurrence too, and their chattering had died down to nothingness, so that by the time the car door opened, they were in complete silence_

_"Aibou? Where's Joey?"_

_"I ... don't know, he's not answering the door and he's not answering his phone either, I can't seem to get in touch with him,"_

_"Are you worried that something happened?" Atem guessed, moving aside in the limo to allow Yugi more room to climb into the car as his partner slid in beside him_

_"Yeah, this really isn't like him... I've tried calling Serenity too and she doesn't know what happened to him, she hasn't been able to get in touch with him all day either,"_

_"So what do we do?" Mokuba asked worriedly, now fully invested in all of this himself_

_"We look for him," Atem concluded effortlessly_

_"Joey isn't the sort to just up and dissappear, if he's gone, there's a reason for it,"_

_In fairness, Atem was completely right_

_Joey had a pretty good reason for being gone...._

 

"Sorry, what does any of this have to do with your fiance'?" Marik asked, leaning back with a nearly bored expression on his face

"I'm getting to that," Seto frowned

"Yugi insisted that he stay to find his freind, Atem too, I tried my best to make them leave but they refused, so I sent everyone else on ahead, it took us half the day just to get our first lead though, and... by the time we did...."

 

_"You can't do this!"_

_"Hm? And what exactly am I doing?" Atem asked casually, his expression blank as he leaned back in his chair, staring forward at the stranger_

_"I'm just having a conversation with you,"_

_"You kidnapped me!!"_

_"Did I? I don't think I did.... I mean, this is your house, and you were already tied up when I found you here, I haven't done a thing,"_

_Seto was honestly pretty impressed, as soon as Atem tracked down the lead he dropped the information about him to a rival gang leader and that guy "conveniently" took care of the kidnapping and for hm, having taken some money that this one owed, evidently_

_Ofcourse Atem hadn't technically done anything wrong by mentioning the guy's location to his informant, he had never made any suggestion of law breaking and when he showed up the asshole was already tied up_

_It was a nice loophole, Seto had to admit_

_"Fucking dirty cops...!!"_

_"Are we? Aw, don't hurt my feelings," Atem pouted fakely, tilting his head_

_"I don't think you've got the foggiest idea of how 'dirty' I can be, I mean, I haven't even touched you.... yet, but tommorrow is Purge night, and if you don't cough up the information I want, I'll be sure to visit you then,"_

_"Funny thing about Purge night," Yugi- who was stalking around in circles like a shark- added, tracing his fingers along the back of Atem's chair_

_"Since technically all crimes are legal on Purge night, by threatening to commit a crime **on** Purge night, you aren't **technically** breaking any laws... because crime will be legal, so it won't be a crime, funny how that works, isn't it?"_

_"I think it's hilarious," Atem mused, pulling his gun from his holster and examining it for a moment, dragging his fingers along the handle before allowing his eyes to flick up towards the suspect again_

_"Anyway, Hirutani, I can't do anything to you today, but in about twenty-four hours, I can do anything I want, like... kill you, for example," he paused, leaning closer and pressing the barrely of his gun against Hirutani's thigh, much to the gangster's distress_

_"Or shoot off your little freind, or even cut things off.. one by one... starting with the **smallest** ," he hummed, pressing the gun harder into the other man's flesh, his eyes directly on his crotch, before he leaned up again and pulled his gun away_

_"And anyway, even if I was doing something illegal here, you'll be dead tommorrow anyway so what does it matter? What's going to stop me from holding you captive for twenty-four hours, then killing you at six o'clock tommorrow? What would you do? It isn't like you have any way to get away from me after all,"_

_"Fuckers..." Hirutani spat irritably_

_"Maybe," Atem shrugged back, his foot bobbing casually, legs crossed, still seeming no more bothered or put out than he would have if he were having a casual dinner conversation_

_"But we're the fuckers who are going to make sure we put Purge night to good use if you don't tell us where Officer Wheeler is, and I'd **pray** to whatever god you worship that he's alive when I find him, because if he isn't? I'm going to be pretty mad, I might even be ... crazed... by greif and anger, enough so to track you down and make Jigsaw look like a fucking pacifist, so .... with all of that being said, do you have anything to tell me?"_

 

"Damn, your fiance' is hardcore," Marik snickered, clearly pleased as he leaned back in his seat

"Yeah, to put it mildly," Seto snorted

"But the people who took his freind are even more so,"

"Let me guess... Industrial Illusions?"

Now that legitimately shocked Seto, his mouth dropping open and his eyes widening

"How did you-"

"I go to the auctions every year to rescue people, I know them by now, Industrial Illusions is the one who puts on the carnival to begin with,"

Of-fucking- _course_ they were

"SO, you found out your freind-"

"Atem's freind,"

"-whatever, was taken by I.I., how does this correlate to Atem being taken?"

"Because his dumbass decision was what happened next- or... I guess more accurately, Yugi Muto's dumbass decision happened next and Atem's followed directly behind it, as per usual,"

 

_"What do you **mean** you sold yourself to Industrial Illusions!?"_

_"It was the only way!" Yugi shouted back, only further fueling Seto's anger_

_"Oh bull-fucking-shit!"_

_"Seto, it was the only way to find Joey in an **hour**! We've been looking for nearly an entire day and keep getting shut out, there's no other option!"_

_"There is ALWAYS another option!! You can't be serious!"_

_Seto was losing his fucking mind over this, was Yugi serious!?_

_How could he be this STUPID!?_

_"Seto .... if we're going to get Joey back before disaster strikes-"_

_He couldn't **BELIEVE** what he was hearing, spinning around to stare at Atem in utter horror_

_"Oh no... no not you too, don't tell me you agree with his batshit crazy plan!!"_

_"'Agree with' is a bit of an overstatement," Atem corrected, crossing his arms over his chest, his face falling even more serious than it already had been_

_"But.... this is a sure fire way to get into the carnival, and it's too late to do anything about it now,"_

_Seto didn't know how to feel, as much as he was absolutely FURIOUS and filled to the brim with rage... he was also scared to fucking **death**_

_He took Atem's hand, pulling him aside and towards a corner out of Yugi's earshot_

_"Come with me... Atem please, **please** come with me to New Zealand, we need to go, we need to go NOW-"_

_"Seto-"_

_"I know that Yugi is like family to you, Joey too, but you can't- .. you can't go through with this, please, please you don't-"_

_" **Seto** -"_

_"You don't know what they're capable of! You can't fight them off on your own Atem, I know that you're capable but so are they! They can survive on their own, they don't have to have you there holding their hands to-"_

_" **Seto!!** "_

_That was enough to shut the CEO up, his breathing heavy and panicked as he waited for Atem to finish speaking_

_And gods... Atem felt **horrible** , he had never seen Seto looking so terrified before_

_He always knew that he was extremely anti-Purge, and he didn't have a stomach for violence, but ...._

_"Seto, come with me baby, let's go call Isono ok? We'll get him to bring the car, ok?"_

_Timidly, Seto nodded, following Atem easily, like a puppy desperately following his master_

_He was unfamiliar with Yugi's house, only having been there a few times himself, but he didn't really need to know where they were going, he trusted Atem completely_

_"Isono isn't here, I told him to stay behind with your freinds at the hotel, I had Fugata fly back alone, so you'll have to call him,"_

_Atem paused, eyebrows raising as he approached a plain looking door in the kitchen, one Seto had always assumed lead to the basement, and opened it_

_"Why did you do that?"_

_"Let's just say I owe Isono an overdue vacation,"_

_Truthfully, Isono had never been in Japan during Purge night, he always stayed with Seto and Mokuba wherever they were, Seto wasn't about to change that just because he and his fiance' were late getting out of the hellhole that their country had become_

_It was funny really, Seto had always been so proud to be Japanese, but the older he got, the more disillusioned he became with his country- as did most people, or so he had heard, especially once these damn Purge nights began_

_What used to be his home, where he couldn't stand to be away from, had slowly turned into a nightmare that he couldn't wait to get out of_

_The Purge did that though, it turned safe places into torture chambers_

_"Seto?"_

_Blinking, Seto hurried the last few steps to follow Atem into the room and immediately dropped into one of the soft, comfy chairs in the back, knowing Atem would crawl into his lap and breathing a sigh of releif as he did so_

_"Seto, I know you're scared, but I promise, everything is going to be ok," the officer swore, leaning close and giving his lover a gentle kiss on the cheek as he typed away on his cell phone, presumably texting Fugata as Seto wrapped his arms around his lover's waist and snuggled against him, like a big dog trying to cuddle a cat_

_"I know.... I know.... we'll be out of here soon," Seto sighed quietly_

_The Purge would start in less than hour now, but Seto was growing confident again that they would be ok_

_It would take Fugata only twenty minutes to get here, twenty to get back to the plane, by the time the sirens sounded, they'd be boarded and heading for air space, and though Seto had seen this night bring out alot of crazy shit, he'd yet to see anyone stupid enough to attack a fucking **jet** leaving the runway_

_It was far from ideal, and they'd spend most of the night in the air, but that was ok, atleast they'd be out of the country, and there was a pull-out bed on the jet, they could just sleep until they landed, maybe watch a little TV or something_

_"I promise Atem, when this night is over, I'll send my **best** men to fetch your freinds and fly them to New Zealand, for a vacation if nothing else but... mostly so you can see for yourself that they're ok,"_

_Seto's beleif in his own words was shaky at best, but he had to atleast **sound** confident or Atem might change his mind and run off after all_

_He really did hate to leave them like this, he wasn't cruel, he may not be emotionally available enough to really consider Atem's freinds as his own freinds yet, but that didn't mean he wished them ill, it's just.... if the choice came down to them or Atem, the choice was easy to make_

_If the choice came down to **anyone** and Atem- Mokuba excluded- the choice was easy to make, and it always would be_

_"Seto.... sweetie.... you know how much I love you, right?"_

_"I do, Pharaoh," he promised softly, taking a deep, slow breath as he rested his head against Atem's shoulder, listening to the repetitive sounds of his thumb against the keypad of the cellphone, Atem's other arm around his neck, it wasn't ideal, but it was still bliss compared to the alternative_

_"You know I love you more than anything else in the entire universe, right?"_

_"Yes Pharaoh, and I love you a million times more than that," Seto hummed sweetly, it was their little back-and-forth, their special "I love you"s that no one else could claim_

_Atem would say that "I love you more than the universe", Seto would say "I love you a million times more than that", and then they would argue until they ended up kissing_

_It was gross and cheesy and had all of the makings of what their future children would quickly come to resent them for doing in public, but it was their's_

_And it was true_

_Seto had never even known it was possible to love someone this much, aside from Mokuba ofcourse, but that was.. a different kind of love, obviously_

_When it came to feelings of love, Atem was in a world all his own_

_"I know you do baby... I know, and I know that you want to protect me, that you're afraid for me, I can't hold that against you, that would make me a horrible person, if I did,"_

_Seto listened, but was so tired and emotionally wrung out that he was only half-paying attention_

_That would come to be his biggest mistake of the night_

_"But... I have to do this, I can't let my partner and my best freind get hurt, I can't let them be involved in this... I can help them, so I have to, I'm so sorry Seto... I hope one day you'll forgive me,"_

_Seto jerked his head up, suddenly realizing what Atem was saying, but it was too late_

_The cop had jumped out of Seto's lap and run to the door_

_Seto sprinted after him, but before he could reach him, the door was slammed shut in his face, and Seto heard the familiar clicking sound of a lock being slid into place_

_"A-Atem!?" he screamed, jiggling the handle_

_**Security: Engaged** boomed a loud, robotic voice_

_In that moment, Seto slowly turned around and took a better look at the room he was in_

_It looked kind of like a small living room, with a coffee table and a few comfortable chairs, some books and playing cards laid out and a mini fridge in the corner..._

_But the walls were all reinforced.. and there was a keypad by the door_

_And the realization- horrifying as it is- quickly dawned on him that he wasn't in a normal room_

_He was in a **panic** room_

_"No..." he breathed, his hands shaking as he slammed himself against the door, pounding on it desperately and screaming at the top of his lungs_

_"No no no no! Let me out!! Let me out!!! **PLEASE!!**!!"_

_He could feel the tears stinging his eyes, his body shaking in pure unbridled panic as he slammed his fists against the door harder and harder, screamed louder and louder, but to no avail_

_"A-Ate- ..? A-Atem!? Atem!!!! **ATEM!!!!!!** "_


	3. No One's Gonna Take My Soul Away

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter Title: "Gods And Monsters" by Lana Del Rey https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rzkt9t_e75o
> 
> Part of why I chose this for the chapter title is actually the Jessica Lange cover, as it takes place during a carnival/freak show https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4tCuf3SGHTU
> 
> "Monster" by Lady Gaga - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RqDbg9c4GXw

"I don't get it, if it was a panic room, couldn't you just unlock it from the inside somehow?" Marik asked in confusion

"Sure, if I'd had the code, but panic rooms like that operate on two different codes- one for the inside, so you can lock yourself in and other people out, and a different one for the outside, so you can lock someone else in and give them no way to escape, I didn't have the code for either, needless to say,"

"Then how did you get out?" Ishizu asked curiously

"Atem gave Fugata the code with strict orders to bring three other bodyguards and force me onto the jet, he wasn't counting on me nocking them all out and making a run for it,"

Seto felt bad about it, ofcourse, but he locked them in the panic room with the code- wich he got from a slightly unwilling Fugata- written down on a notepad for them, so it wasn't like they were in much danger

"What did you do then?"

This time Marik was asking, and Seto had the feeling that this entire event was like one big bedtime story to him, but the CEO couldn't bring himself to gave a fuck

"Yugi is a good cop, he has cameras around the outside of his property, so I just hacked into the cameras, found the license plate of the van that Yugi and Atem were forced into, then broke into the police station and ran the plates, I stopped by my house to get Mokuba's baseball bat, hunted the owner of the van down, and beat the shit out of him until he told me where the carnival was going to be,"

"How'd you know he would be home?" Marik asked in confusion

Seto bit the tip of his tongue, his eyes averted breifly

"I'd run into him before, I knew a few things,"

And he'd leave it at that, thank you

The siblings seemed a little bit concerned, but didn't ask anything further as the car suddenly came to a stop

"We're here," Marik said suddenly, reaching under the small seat he was currently in and pulling out a backpack, tossing it towards Seto

"I suggest you choose one of those before we go in, unless you want every Pro-Purger here to recognize your pretty face,"

Wrinkling his nose, Seto huffed and started sifting through the bag, realizing, albeit maybe belatedly, that it was full of festival masks, perfect to wear to an... "occasion".... like this one

.. Huh...

"This one," he finally muttered, taking out a feathery black masquerade mask and staring down listlessly at it

"Perfect, it suits you, now let's go find your boyfreind,"

The van doors opened and Marik jumped out, already putting his hood back over his face and starting several steps ahead of Seto

"Come on, get the lead out, before that mask becomes part of your face,"

 

_"You ought to take that thing off, before that mask becomes part of your face,"_

_Atem snickered, the sound distorted under the rubber mask as he stepped closer, tilting his head playfully_

_"What, are you scared? Afraid I'm going to go all 'The Haunted Mask' on you?"_

_"Oh yeah, just terrified, please take it off Carly Beth, that thing creeps me out," Seto said dryly, eyes rolling playfully as he stepped closer and gave a little tug to the rubber creation_

_"I'm mostly just scared that you're going to suffocate to death, how did you even get all of your hair in that thing to begin with?" he questioned, eyebrows raised, as Atem reached up and finally peeled the thing off_

_His hair was all over the place, and he was noticeably flushed, so obviously Seto hadn't been too far off the mark there_

_"It was something of a feat, I'll tell you that much," he noted playfully, shaking his hair out as he straightened the mask and slowly returned it to it's place on a shelf behind him_

_"I'm sure it was, now come on, I want to show you something else,"_

_"Alright, but then we really need to leave, it won't do for you to be late to your own Halloween party," Atem noted, still messing with his hair with one hand as he curled the other around Seto's, following him through the otherwise empty Halloween store_

_He still wasn't sure why Seto had insisted on coming here on Halloween night before his party, he didn't believe the excuse that he needed some sort of make up for his costume that he didn't have at home, particularly because they were supposed to go as Jack and Sally from The Nightmare Before Christmas and Atem knew for a **fact** that they had the kind of make up he needed already_

_But that was all he'd been able to get out of him all this time so he went with it- atleast for now_

_"And here I thought you understood being fashionably late,"_

_"Well it stops being 'fashionable' when it's your own party," Atem noted with a small snicker, eyebrows raising as they stopped in front of a little "haunted house", wich was probably no more than three or four yards long at most, he was sure he could walk through it in twenty steps or less_

_What could Seto have wanted to show him in there?_

_"Go on, I'm right behind you," Seto promised, gesturing his boyfreind forward, much to Atem's mild concern_

_True, the doorway was pretty narrow, so they couldn't both go in at once, but...._

_Something about this **wreaked** of wrong, and he wasn't really sure what it was_

_Still, a bit ambivalently, he started walking into the little haunted house, making note of how dark it was, nothing but a few purple string lights to light his path_

_And there were no footsteps behind him..._

_"Seto?" he called out, turning around and finding himself alone_

_"Seto?!"_

_He ran to the curtain leading to the exit of the little thing, but found with horror that it wouldn't open, there was a door behind it now and it wouldn't budge_

_Heart racing, he hurriedly rushed out of the other side of the house, flustered and afraid, only to find himself surrounded by people in Halloween costumes_

_Each one was wearing an incredibly well done, movie level monster costume, from zombies to werewolves to vampires, ghosts and lake monsters and mummies and witches, and everything else he could think of_

_For a moment, there was silence, before suddenly, music started to play_

__**He ate my heart**  
He a-a-ate my heart  
He ate my heart  
He a-a-ate my heart out 

_Was this... Lady Gaga...?_

_Before he could ponder it much further, the people in monster costumes started.. dancing..!?_

_Now far more confused than anything else, Atem stepped fully out of the little haunted house, and back into the store, making note of the fact that the racks of costumes and masks that had been here moments ago were now moved out of the way, apparently giving the monster people more room to dance_

_And they were definitely dancing- all perfectly in step with eachother, clearly professionals, clearly following choreography_

_....._

_This **wreaked** of Seto Kaiba_

_If Atem had learned anything about his lover over the past year and a half, it was that when Seto pulled some sort of "surprise", there was really nothing he could do but just go with it_

_A few moments into the routine, he started noticing the monster-dancers clearing a path for him, a straight line, from the haunted house, to a life-sized coffin several yards away, near the front door_

_That certainly hadn't been there earlier..._

_Slowly, Atem started walking forward as the creatures danced around him, his heart racing with confusion, excitement, and just a tiny bit of fear_

_After all, he still had absolutely no real proof that any of this had to do with Seto, for all he knew, it was an elaborate kidnapping plot_

_However, his thoughts on that changed once he actually got to the coffin and, somewhat timidly, opened it, sliding the lid off... and revealing a zombiefied Seto laying in the box_

_Now certain that this was his boyfreind's bizarre idea of a romantic gesture, Atem suppressed a laugh and stepped back, watching as Seto rose up slowly with his arms crossed over his chest like a mummy, or a vampire in an old movie_

_He snickered slightly as the "zombie" somehow managed to rise to his feet without moving his hands, stepping out of the coffin and slowly uncrossing his arms_

_Atem watched in amusement as Seto reached into the bloody, fleshy, prosthetic over his chest and pulled out a bloody beating heart, handing it out to Atem_

_For a moment, Atem wasn't sure what to make of it, but after realizing that Seto clearly needed him to take it for some reason, he carefully picked it up, realizing that it was hollow..._

_Maybe there was something inside?_

_Curiously, he carefully slid his fingers into the rubber organ, pulling out a little- ... **ring**..._

_He was holding an engagement ring_

_And when he looked away, Seto was on the ground, on one nee, staring up at Atem with a warm, loving smile on his face_

_"Marry me, Atem,"_

 

"I'm not sure what it is you're thinking about, but now really isn't the time to lose your attention," Marik hissed, successfully pulling Seto back into reality

"It's nothing," he lied quietly, clearing his throat as he crossed his arms over his chest

Far from nothing, that had been the best night of his life, he'd even had it filmed and watched it sometimes when he was having a bad day

Atem was responsible for his best memory

He _prayed_ to any god that would hear hm that he wouldn't also be responsible for his worst

"So where do we search for Atem?"

There really hadn't been any exaggeration in calling this place a carnival, it was a massive American style festival, with tents and stands set up everywhere and people walking around in masks laughing and joking with eachother

He wouldn't have assumed it was anything weird if it weren't for the fact that the carnival-goers were carrying around butcher nives instead of cotton candy

The entire thing was macabre, he could hear screams and shouts of horror and pain from everywhere around him, as well as the sound of laughing and shouting from barkers promising the most sickening ideas of torture...

He could smell the thick iron scent of blood in the air, mixed with the nearby ocean air, making a truly nauseating mixture

He could feel his stomach churning...

"We don't," Marik replied casually, gently nudging Seto down towards a large gathering of people, all standing eagerly in front of a stage in front of the peir's walk-way

"What do you mean?" Seto hissed, eyes narrowed

"We wait for him to come to us," Marik explained, stepping towards a tall, hooded figure in a plague doctor mask and holding up two fingers

" _Excuse me_?" Seto hissed, watching the exchange in annoyance as, obediently, the stranger reached into a plain metal bucket beside him and pulled out two sparkling red bidding paddles, handing them to Marik, only for Marik to hand one to Seto and gently but forcefully push him along

"You said that Yugi sold himself to Industrial Illusions, right? Well the only place people go when they're sold here is to the auction, the other uh.... _attractions_..... are just poor random schmucks who were at the wrong place at the wrong time and got scooped up right after the sirens sounded, but nobody gets paid for them, people who are sold or who sell themselves and then choose a beneficiary to receive payment are picked up pre-Purge and sent to the auction, the auction needs the most people so they have to start picking them up a day or two before the night begins,"

Well that certainly explained why they had taken Joey so early...

"And you're absolutely _sure_ about this?"

"Positive, we just need to wait here for them to come out on auction, then make sure you're the highest bidder, shouldn't be too hard since you're the richest man in the country,"

"So ... we're just going to play this game!? What the fuck!? What about breaking them out and destroying this place!?"

"Keep your voice down before you draw attention," Marik hissed, glaring up at the taller man

"You don't want to create chaos, trust me, that isn't the way to do this, you'll just end up getting everyone killed, the auction will start in a minute, bid on your lover and his freinds, then when we go to pick them up, if you absolutely _must_ , you can shoot the dealers, but for right now, you HAVE to stay calm, understand?"

Seto gritted his teeth, clearly furious, but forced himself to nod in agreement

He didn't actually agree with Marik's opinion, but until he could get a better idea of how to rescue Atem- or even where he was- he didn't have much choice

"Did you find him?"

Yugi shook his head, causing Atem's shoulders to sag in disappointment

"He isn't here, I went all the way to the very front of the line but .. nothing, no one has even seen him," Yugi said with a low sigh, his head hanging, his shoulders dropping

"Then where the fuck is he!?" Atem hissed under his breath

Dread began to sink over him, horrible fear that they had gotten this wrong was pouring through his blood

What if Joey wasn't here at this "carnival" _at all_?

What if the information he had gotten was wrong?

What if he and Yugi had allowed themselves to be put in this situation for nothing? If he had locked Seto away and possibly lost his trust forever for nothing? What if Joey was already-....?

"He's here," Atem growled with determination, more out of trying to comfort himself than actually believing it

"He HAS to be here, Hirutani is too much of a coward and too little of an intellectual to have tried to outsmart us, he's at this carnival somewhere, it just isn't at the auction,"

"Then where? The carnival opened an hour ago, by now he could be-"

"Don't even say it Yugi," Atem snapped, his eyes narrowed as he turned to stare at his partner

"Just.... don't, he's here, he's fine, Joey is clever and strong, he's _fine_ , we just have to get out of here and get to him, that's all,"

"Right.... and do you have any plans on how to do that?" Yugi asked slowly, clearly disillusioned as he stared listlessly at the guards on the other side of the fence

They all had guns and tasers, and they were quick to use them too

He and Atem had only been here for a little more than an hour, but they had both already witnessed atleast six people who had tried to escape or merely looked like they were going to get shot or tased and forced to the front of the line

They certainly didn't need to join them

"As a matter of fact," Atem said slowly, taking a step towards the fence and eyeing the pair of scissors that were settled neatly in the guard's belt, he could get them without too much problem, he just needed a good distraction.....

"I do,"

 

~+~

 

Seto was itching

The auction had just started and he felt knots forming in his stomach

Everything inside of him SCREAMED at this was wrong and that he needed to intervene, that he needed to stop this before it went on any further, that he needed to _save them_...

"We'll start the bidding for this lovely lady at a hundred thousand yen! Do I hear a hundred thousand?"

A paddle in front of Seto raised, the girl on the stage- a pale, slender thing with long blue-silver hair- was screaming in terror, begging for her life...

"Hundred thousand to the gentleman with the machete!"

No....

"Do I hear two? Two hundred thousand to the young lady in the clown mask, how about three?"

She was still screaming, still begging

"Three hundred back to Mr. Machete, do I hear four?"

No no no....

"Three hundred thousand going once, going twice-"

She was outright sobbing now--

"Four!" Seto shouted, raising his paddle

"Four hundred thousand to the tall lad in the raven mask, do I hear five?"

For a moment, he locked eyes with the girl on stage, and she seemed to calm, even if it was barely for a blink of a moment

"What are you _doing_!?" Marik hissed

"Five hundred thousand to Mr. Machete! Do I hear six?"

Seto raised his paddle again

"Six hundred to Raven Mask! How about seven?"

"I'm bidding,"

"You're nuts!"

"Seven hundred to the machete-master, do I hear eight?"

Seto raised it again

"Kaiba, stop!" Marik warned in a hiss

"Eight hundred thousand to Mr. Raven, do I hear nine?"

"Shut it, it's my money," Seto growled back

"It isn't about the money, it's about the suspicion, you can't win this auction do you hear me!?"

"Nine hundred thousand to Machete Man, do I hear an even ten?"

"Kaiba, I'm begging you, _don't_ -"

"And ten hundred thousand yen to the man in the raven mask!! Do I hear eleven? Ten hundred going once... going twice.... SOLD to the fine tall gentleman in the raven mask for ten hundred thousand yen, what a way to start the night folks!"

"You are a fucking IDIOT," Marik hissed, smacking Seto on the back of the head, not that Seto necessarily cared, he was too full of anxiety and adrenaline to really even notice

"What's your problem anyway?" he finally asked, his eyes tearing away from the stage as the girl was herded off and in a different direction

"My problem is that you went and bid on a total stranger right out of the starting gate and you're going to make people suspicious of us,"

"Why?" Seto asked, now more confused than annoyed

"Think about it you fucking egg! You have three people to bid on, this ones makes four, people don't typically buy more than one or two, _maybe_ three people at auction, any more than that is going to make people suspicious and make them think you're up to something, especially because morons who think they can get away with 'rescuing' a bunch of people by bidding on them and then trying to shoot up the claims tent to 'rescue' them will really work, every fucking year there are atleast two or three idiots like that and YOU don't need to be flagged as one of them or you'll never get your precious fiance' back, and you'll drag _me_ down with you! Besides, I already see where this is going, you couldn't keep your dick down for the very first auction? _Seriously_? I swear to the gods if you try to pull off some bidding extravaganza and buy a shit ton of people they'll KNOW something is wrong!"

Seto winced, eyes closing, forcing himself not to listen to the bidding going on around him as he glanced at the stage

He didn't recognize the person there, he was just an average middle-aged man, quietly crying, looking worn down and defeated and with a bleeding leg....

Seto's hand twitched

"If you raise that paddle I will cut off your fucking head," Marik threatened in a hiss

Seto didn't get the chance to argue back, suddenly coming face to- .. well.... mask... with another tall figure in a plague doctor mask, just like the one handing out paddles, but this one was carrying a small basket of what appeared to be brightly colored tickets

"This your first time?" he asked, handing Seto a bright blue ticket with #001 printed on one side and ¥10,000,000 on the other

Seto only nodded, slowly taking the ticket

"When you're ready to leave, take this to the bright blue tent to your left with 'Claims' on the sign, hand it into the cashier as well as your payment, we accept cash, debit, and digital transfer, no credit, personal checks, or bitcoin,"

"Right...." he muttered, flinching slightly at the sound of the gavel landing down on the wooden disk beneath it, apparently the middle-aged soldier had just been sold....

The figure before him, however, didn't notice, too busy pressing his fingers against his ear, assumingly against an ear peice he was wearing, as he nodded along and grabbed another ticket as well as a black marker from his basket, and wandered off into the crowd

"Don't people ever buy more than three?" Seto finally asked, glancing at the stage again and biting his tongue when a teenage boy in a leather jacket was hauled onto stage

Marik's hand suddenly shot out and grabbed Seto's own, keeping him from raising the paddle before bidding had even begun

"On occasion, but it's rare, and those people aren't typically strangers in the crowd, they're usually identifiable in some way, like... see that guy in the front row in the white top hat? He buys six exactly, every year, no more no less, but ... like I said, those are rare, these auctions are expensive and most consider the victims at them to be... luxury items, something to splurge on when you have something special in mind, sort of like... truffles, or caviar, you can't make a meal off of them but they're a nice accent when you can afford them,"

That analogy _disgusted_ Seto, he felt like gagging....

"You know, Japan has only had the Purge for seven years, you sure do sound experienced for someone who's only been here for a handfull of times,"

Even if Industrial Illusions had been putting these on since the first year- wich he sorted of doubted, given that the first year was rather tame- that would still only be seven

Marik sounded as though he'd been to _dozens_

"Who said this was the only one I'd been to? You really think this is the only auction in Japan?" he snorted, eyes rolling

Oh...

That... that somewhat changed things.....

"So how many do you buy then?"

"Me? No more than three- ever, I usually don't bid until the auction is almost over, I make sure that everyone else as claimed their's first, then I slip in and shoot the cashier, with a silencer it's pretty inconspicuous, I change my disguise every year so they don't catch onto me though, just in case, they've tried to keep that from happening, doing things like installing a metal detector and demanding that all people turn in their weapons to the Keeper outside the tent, they've yet to find a way to detect a 3D-printed gun, other than maybe a pat-down, but I pretty seriously doubt anyone at an event like this would be consenting of something like that,"

That made sense, sort of... more or less....

"Is that really... worth it though? To come all this way, do all of this, just for two or three random strangers? Wouldn't you make a much bigger difference if you just .... blew apart a place like this?"

"No, one thing I've learned about the Purge is that less is more, when you go around causing chaos you end up with much more chaos than you can ever anticipate, I go around to these festivals every year, make connections to get into and know about other events so that I can help people like _you_ rescue your loved ones, between the festivals and the people I save on the street I'll save between one and two hundred people every year, isn't that a pretty good difference?"

"But I the way I hear it from you, you're only saving three per festival, if you got rid of the festivals all together wouldn't that make a bigger difference?"

"Not really, they'll just pop up again next year, and I hit up four or five of these every year so that's over a dozen lives saved right there,"

He understood Marik's perspective, he really did....

He just didn't understand how he could go into these things to save people and feel ok wth leaving when he only had two or three at a time, how did he walk away? How did he resist the urge to take this place down entirely?

He didn't understand.....

"I still think it'd be alot better to just ... go on a shooting spree, take down everyone leading these places and let everyone else go..."

"That's an idealistic approach, but not a realistic one, you'll just end up getting yourself killed without making any real difference, listen to me Kaiba, I cannot stress this enough- you _cannot_ do anything rash or stupid, you _cannot_ try to outsmart these people, and you absolutely, above all else, must NOT create chaos!"

At that exact moment, like a sign from above, the auctioneer was shot in the head as swarms of people ran out from behind the stage, some of them were their hands zip-tied together, others with their hands free, some weilding weapons but most clearly not

Some ran for the exit, others for the audience, clearly aiming to attack

Guards were following, screaming into their radios as they shot at the escaped prisoners

Everyone was screaming and running and attacking eachother and any organization was entirely gone

_Chaos unleashed_

"So...." Seto said slowly, turning his attention to an absolutely _shocked_ Marik

"What was that you were saying about not creating chaos?"


	4. Outside The World Seems A Violent Place; I Know You're Bleeding But You'll Be Ok

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter Title: "Various Storms And Saints" by Florence + The Machine https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P3tsq4xn8hE

The plot had been relatively easy

Yugi laid down, having faked a fainting spell, and stuck his foot outside of the fence _just_ enough to trip the guard nearest to them, giving Atem the opportunity to reach out and snag the scissors without being noticed

Yugi ultimately paid for that by being kicked in the gut to "wake him up", but it was worth it, allowing Atem to cut Yugi free

The difficult part, after that, was quietly convincing the other people around them to launch into a frenzy of chaos all at the same time

It had taken alot of convincing for some of them, considering that the unavoidable fact was that some people would die during this riot

But, they had reasoned, if they didn't atleast _try_ to escape, they would likely _all_ die

So once Atem was loose and they had begun cutting other people free as well, their plan was set in motion, and by the time the fifth victim was lead on stage, they had finally enacted it

And chaos had erupted

"We have to find Joey!" Yugi shouted over the incredibly loud noise, his hand squeezing Atem's firmly as Atem's fingers wrapped tighter around his partner's

"I know, where do we start?"

That always seemed to be the problem, Yugi's face fell at the mere question of where to go next

This place was huge and elaborate, and they didn't even know for sure how big it was, it could easily go on even further than they thought, if it was out of their visual range

"I don't know.... we'll have to just start testing things at random, we can't stand around thinking about it, we're wasting too much time," Atem decided

Yugi seemed displeased with that idea, opening his mouth to say something, but immediately being interrupted

"ATEM!!!"

Atem recognized that voice, his eyes went wide, his heart racing as he slowly turned around and stared at his lover

His first reaction was one of immediate joy and releif, rushing to his fiance and wrapping his arms around him, hugging Seto tightly and eagerly peppering him with kisses, crying out over and over again about how worried he had been for the taller man, how much he loved him, how relieved he was that he was alright- and from what little he could hear, Seto was saying essentially the same thing about him

....

And then, just as suddenly as the releif had poured in, the _anger_ began to slowly descend into his bloodstream

"What the FUCK are you doing here!?" Atem asked suddenly, jerking back and gawking at Seto in pure rage

"I came chasing after my fiance' after you ran off making the world's dumbest decision, that's what," Seto hissed

Atem's eyes narrowed, clearly not taking too kindly to such a statement

"Excuse me? So not only are you going to disobey a direct order, but now you're going to disrespect me too?"

"Now is _not_ the time Atem! I think life and death situations give me a free pass!"

"If anything they're when you should listen to me more than ever, I'm trying to keep you SAFE you egg!" Atem shouted back

"And that's exactly what I'm trying to do for you! I officially rule that life and death situations are a boyfreinds thing, not a powerplay thing,"

Atem opened his mouth, clearly preparing to argue, but luckily Yugi spared him the trouble

"Can we please _focus_!? Every minute that passes by, Joey gets closer and closer to death!"

They fell quiet at that, both of their expressions falling more somber as Seto gently but firmly wrapped his arms around Atem's upper body, tugging him in closer, holding onto him more tightly, suddenly reminded of what he had and how much he ached not to lose it

"So you two still haven't found him yet then?"

"No.... he wasn't at the auction," Yugi sighed in frustration

Seto immediately turned to Marik, eyes narrowed at the blonde

"I thought you said _all_ people who were taken pre-Purge were taken to the auction,"

"They are," Marik insisted, slowly pushing his hood back to reveal his face

"But ... there's one _other_ auction that goes on here, I worried your freind might be there but didn't want to divide your attention from your fiance' and his partner, who I knew would be here,"

Seto was so busy focusing on this new information, that he didn't notice the looks of anger and distaste that were formed on both Atem and Yugi's faces, atleast... not until Atem spoke

"Marik Ishtar.... what in the _fuck_ are you doing here?"

Seto blinked, looking between them, noting Atem's look of disdain... and Marik's smirk of superiority....

"You two know eachother?"

"We do," Marik hummed brightly, his eyes practically glowing with amusement as he grinned at the trio before him

"Why are you here and what have you been doing with my fiance'?" Atem hissed, pressing himself back against Seto's body and curling his hands around his lover's arm as a way of sheilding him, from what, he wasn't sure yet, but with Marik around, there was no telling....

"You make me sound like such a bad guy, Officer, but I saved your fiance's life, doesn't that count for anything?"

"Wait a minute, I don't understand what's going on," Seto huffed in frustration, earning a sympathetic, but stressed look from his fiance'

"Marik Ishtar runs the biggest yakuza family in the region and one of the biggest in Japan, he and Atem are... sort of mortal enemies," Yugi explained quietly

"So all this time..... all of that shit about you being anti-Purge... was that just a lie!? Were you just trying to gain my trust to... to fuck with Atem!?"

"Ofcourse not!" Marik huffed, clearly offended

"The entire concept of the Purge is the most disgustingly immoral thing I've ever heard of and just because I have no problem with a little _controlled_ crime doesn't mean I think this .... orgy of violence should exist!" he protested thoroughly, huffing, before adding one last thing

"Plus it's bad for business,"

"So you're anti-Purge but you saved me just so you could... what? Get Atem to owe you one?"

"No, I saved you because on Purge night I save people, and when I realized who you were I saw you as the country's most famous and vocal anti-Purge activist and I wanted to help support that cause, I really _am_ a good guy tonight, the fact that saving you just so happens to ingratiate me to your future husband was just a cherry on the sundae,"

"I'm sure he's not ingratiated to you at all," Seto grumbled, feeling hurt and foolish and embarrassed that he had been lured into being a pawn like this, like a lamb lead right into the jaws of a wolf, it was humiliating....

"Does any of it really matter now? We're trying to save Officer Wheeler aren't we? And unfortunately for all of you, I'm the only one here with a good guess as to where he is, so either you follow my lead and we have a chance in hell at saving your freind, or you can try it on your own and take your chances, I guess it really depends on how much the three of you like to gamble,"

Yugi and Atem exchanged glances breifly, before Yugi stepped forward and the two looked back to Marik

"I think we're all pretty tired of gambling tonight,"

 

~+~

 

"You've gotta be fucking kidding me,"

This night just seemed to be getting worse and worse...

As if the auction hadn't been bad enough, staring ahead at what he would have to do- what only _he_ could do- was like staring at the gates of hell

"And you're sure that he's in there?" Atem asked skeptically, his eyes narrowed in skepticism

"What do you want? A written gurantee? I can't give you that, but it's my best guess," Marik huffed back

"Wheeler is a cop, and my guess is that the person who sold him here _told_ Industrial Illusions that he was a cop, unlike you two who were just melded in with the civilians, people pay extraordinary fees on Purge night for the 'blue blooded', and most in the organized crime world would pay anything to see them suffer,"

Atem, Yugi, and Seto slowly turned their faces towards Marik, each looking more displeased than the last

"Not that I'm one of those people ofcourse, or involved in any organized crime activi-"

"You can cut the crap Marik, anything we learn on Purge night is inadmissable in court so you can just admit to being a fucking crime boss," Atem snapped

"Ok, I'm a crime boss, but I really _don't_ have anything against cops, you know, except for the power-hungry, egotistical, bigoted ones that always want to arrest me for being Egyptian and gay, but I know you two are too pure for that,"

"Well I'm glad you can trust the Egyptian bisexual to not judge you for being Egyptian and _gay_ ," Atem grumbled

"Hey, you never know with people, alright?" Marik shrugged back

"Can we please get back to the point?" Yugi snapped, wich was quite unlike him, but it was understandable why

Besides the rather obvious reasons, it surely didn't help that the four of them were currently hiding behind a t-shirt stand, trying to stay away from the seemingly free-for-all chaos that Atem and Yugi had unleashed

Because yes, the place had a fucking t-shirt stand

(Actually it had several places selling various souvenirs, food, and even photos, but Seto was trying to ignore it all for the sake of what remained of his sanity)

"Right, anyway, you're the only one who has enough cash to get in, so you have to go do it," Marik noted, his eyes flicking back to Seto

"And how the fuck do you get around all of these carnivals and festivals without having cash on you?"

Atem and Yugi had an excuse, obviously, they'd both left their wallets at home on purpose, but _this dick-_

"I have _cash_ , I just don't have this _much_ , the VIP tents are too expensive for an up front fee and too complicated to pull off a rescue heist so I never bother with them," Marik explained, glancing down and wincing at the devastated and angry look on Yugi's face before quickly amending his previous statement

"BUT I'm sure that the great Seto Kaiba can get him out of there no problem,"

"Right, I'm sure I can," Seto muttered back, pinching his nose in annoyance

"I'll go, but I need a favor from you first Ishtar,"

Marik blinked in clear surprise, eyebrows raising slowly

"Ok, sure, what can I do for you tonight besides risking my life to save your's and the lives of three assholes who want to put me in prison?"

"I have a jet in a private hangar twenty minutes away from here, I've written down the address in case of an emergency, I need you to take Atem and Yugi, tell the pilot that I gave the order, and get the three of you out of here, fuck take your family for all I care, just get my fiance' out of Japan bef-"

" _Absolutely not_!!" Atem roared, is eyes blazing with anger and agitation

"We are NOT having this conversation again Seto Kaiba! We will leave when, and _ONLY_ when, we have Joey back, and all four of us get on that plane, understand!?"

"I'm on his side," Yugi insisted immediately

"Yeah, and I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but I'm not leaving either, I already told you that I have a job to do on Purge night," Marik added

Seto felt as though he was the only one trying to be reasonable out of all of the idiots in this place, and he _desperately_ wanted to keep arguing, keep insisting, keep pushing until Atem was out of harm's way....

But he knew the longer he did that, the more time was wasted, and the more likely he would be to be finding a corpse inside that tent instead of Yugi's boyfreind....

"Fine, but I swear on my fucking LIFE that we're leaving as soon as I have Wheeler's ass," he grumbled, stepping out from behind the souvenir stand and doing his best to look like he belonged as he strutted towards the tent in front of him

There was a man outside dressed somewhat similar to court jester, a far difference from the plague doctor style workers who were at the auction, and he seemed significantly more jolly and amused too

Great...

"Good evening Sir! You look like a fine businessman who's tastes are a little more _extravagant_ than most! Might I interest you in a possibly once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to cleanse your soul of the heinous injustices that the Domino City police force may have so abhorrently imposed upon you?"

"Well I don't have a soul, but I'm always interested in shoving a blade down the throat of law enforcement,"

The jester laughed, and Seto was, for once, glad for his sardonic sense of humor

"Oh goodness am I glad you showed up! I think you'll really enjoy this booth! Just behind this curtain, Industrial Illusions is proud to present something truly special- a Domino City pig in all of his disgusting glory! And a _Vice_ cop at that! Now I hope you don't mind my assumptions, but you seem like the type of classy, wealthy gentleman who's been plagued by this sort of pest a few times before, how would you like the chance to purge and purify on a member of the anti-entrepreneur community?"

Seto forced a sickening smirk, pulling his wallet from his pocket and flipping it open

"So what am I bidding on here?"

"Oh no bid just yet! That won't be till later, first you purchase one of _these_ fine opportunities, then when everyone has taken their turn, you'll be able to bid on the opportunity to purge on whatever is left!" the jester noted, gesturing to a large sign by the tent

"Remember that Industrial Illusions proudly offers a variety of private tents for your purging pleasure, with any instrument you can imagine!"

Seto's eyes shifted down to the sign, reading over the options available

_Lighter burn- ¥10,000_  
Stab or cut to extremity- ¥10,000  
Shallow stab or cut to torso- ¥20,000  
Tooth pull- ¥50,000  
Finger removal- ¥100,000  
 ~~Tongue removal- ¥1,000,000~~  
 ~~Castration- ¥10,000,000~~  
*Limb removal- ¥100,000,000 

_*Important note: Limb removal may be subject to restriction based on number of participants and amount of blood loss sustained, please keep in mind when purchasing! Martyr must be conscious when sold to winning bidder! :)_

_Cash, debit, and digital transfer acceptable! Personal checks may be accepted, no credit or bitcoin please!_

 

Seto felt sick to his stomach

He had to swallow down the urge to gag as his eyes swept over the sign before staring back up at the smiling jester who was clearly waiting for a response

"I take it the crossed out options have already been sold?"

"Yes, I'm afraid so, you're our last participant of the night so many of our options have already been taken,"

"I see... I'll take a finger then, I'm mostly interested in the auction, I have my own plans for sacrificing this disgusting swine,"

"Magnificent choice sir! Will that be cash, card, or transfer?"

"Cash, and I'll pay double to go first, I don't want the pain I inflict to be dulled by anyone else's work," Seto answered easily, pulling out a wad of cash and handing it to the jester

"Absolutely! I'll tell the organizer," the jester replied, setting the cash down in a lock box beside him before unlocking a small glass case to his left and pulling out a plastic card

"Scan this at the gate, if you have any weapons on you, please discard them to the guard at the front, there will be a hand-held metal detector you have to pass through but that's just for precautions,"

Seto merely gave a silent nod of agreement, curtly thanking the jester before heading into the tent

As promised, another jester was there with a hand-held metal detector, and Seto merely sighed as he held his arms out to his sides, watching in mild annoyance as the jester scanned the detector up and down his body

It only blipped over his belt buckle, wich he was given an unspoken pass for, before he had to scan his card at the gate and was thus let through

The tent had maybe a dozen participants, all sitting in cheap plastic chairs, chattering with eachother, looking over maps of the grounds, and one in particular who was gnawing on a corndog

_Lovely_

Seto made his way to the front, sitting down in one of the few empty chairs and feeling an enormous sense of releif wash over him as he finally laid eyes on the blonde who started this entire mess

Joey was tied to a scaffold ahead of them, looking exhausted and a little bloodied, but all together seemingly fine

Good....

"Good evening ladies and gentlemen! Welcome to Industrial Illusions Presents: The Carving Of The Pig!! We have here a truly _lovely_ vice detective from the Domino City police department, Joseph Wheeler, who will be giving his life to us tonight for our purging pleasures!"

The audience around Seto all erupted in a series of "boo"s and shouts of negativity, and Joey bit out a few nasty comments of his own, but Seto could barely pay attention to any of it

He was far more concentrated on his plan coming together

He hadn't expected this much security, but evidently, Marik had...

"Now usually we go on a first-come-first-serve basis but as per a ... _special_ request by the young gentleman in the raven mask, he will be the first one to spill the blood of the pig tonight!"

Now the audience erupted in _cheers_ , and Seto felt even sicker

But he stood up regardless, forcing himself to look confident as he he stepped up to the podium and watched the auctioneer pull a large cloth off of a long table full of weapons

Everything from pliers to daggers to saws and machetes and lighters and- ...

There were _alot_ of things

"Please, take your pick," the auctioneer offered politely

Seto's eyes scanned over them for a moment, trying to pick what would be the best to use as a weapon, before finally moving his hand down and picking up a scalpel

"Ah an excellent choice Sir!"

"Thank you," Seto smirked, watching out of the corner of his eye as Joey's expression turned from one of anger to one of shock

Clearly he had recognized the CEO's voice

_Good_

Holding the tiny blade in his hand, he took in a slow breath, stepping closer, preparing himself to act fast- as fast as he could, before suddenly swinging his hand forward and slicing across the auctioneer's throat, watching as the guard hurriedly opened the gate, but easily acting faster, pulling the 3D printed gun Marik had given him out of his pocket and shooting the guard in the chest

There were screams erupting from the audience as they rushed out of the tent, and Seto felt incredibly relieved that they had all been searched and had their own weapons removed beforehand- metal weapons, atleast

He had always known that plastic guns could get past metal detectors, it wouldn't be hard to design them without metal pins, and now that he had proof sitting in his hand...

Shaking his head of the thought, he hurried to pick up the machete on the table and slash the ropes off of Joey's wrists and ankles, helping him down from the cross and grabbing him by the hand

"What the fuck are you doin' here Kaiba!?"

"Saving your ass, what does it look like?" Seto hissed back, handing Joey the machete as he dragged him out of the tent, finding with mild surprise that the trio he had left outside were already in front of them, each covered in significantly more blood than they had been before as they finally locked eyes with the CEO

"JOEY!" Yugi screamed, dropping his sword- when did he get a sword?!- and throwing himself to the blonde, wrapping his arms around him and covering him in kisses

"Are you ok!? What happened? Are you hurt!?"

"I"m fine Yug! I"m fine I promise, are _you_ ok?"

"We're alright, we just... ran into a little trouble... but we're fine, we took care of the guards,"

Yes, as evidenced by the bodies surrounding them...

"We need to get out of here, _NOW_ , it won't be long before they send more security this way!" Marik urged, reaching out to tug on Seto's arm

The CEO only nodded, reaching out for Atem's hand, and squeezing it tightly

"Right, let's go,"

"Aw man, is that the shit they were gonna do to me!?" Joey winced from behind them

Apparently he had seen the sign

"It doesn't matter _now_ , does it? I saved you, let's _go_!"

This time, Seto didn't wait for a response or for the go-ahead from anyone else, he simply yanked Atem forward and started running

"Wait! You idiots may want to come _this way_ towards the _exit_!" Marik shouted, successfully getting Seto's attention and causing him to turn around

When he did, he took notice of the fact that Marik was carrying not only a handgun now, but also-

"Is that the lockbox that clown had?!"

"Hey, I've still gotta work," Marik shrugged simply, nodding his head to the left and taking off

Seto merely sighed, eyes rolling, but wasting no time in following him either

He supposed with all the help Marik had lent them, he could consider that lockbox his "tip"...

"Come on, this way," the blonde urged as they ran, cutting past souvenir stands and torture tents, Seto wanted so desperately to stop and destroy this entire fucking place...

But he knew that he couldn't focus on that now

There was an opening that he could see just up ahead, a hole in a fence, big enough to slip out through, he wondered distantly if Marik had somehow known about it

This carnival was only around once a year, and if that hole had been there last year, wouldn't they have known about it before putting the fence back up?

Oh well, no need to concern himself with that, he had bigger things on his mind

The fence was just ahead now, Marik slipped out first, and Seto gave Atem a little push to get him out next

As he was about to go through, however, his attention was caught again

There was a scream not far behind him, and when he turned to see what had happened, a familiar face caught his eye

It was the same blue-silver-haired girl from the auction, the one he had bought...

Her hands were still zip-tied together and there was a collar around her neck with " _#001_ " printed clearly into it

In the chaos, the claims tent must have been destroyed, and she somehow got out...

But she was practically a sitting duck with her hands bound

Without thinking, he suddenly ditched the fence, much to the screams of the men around him, rushing towards the girl and suddenly grabbing her arm

The girl screamed, clearly startled, but settled the moment Seto spoke

"Come with me if you want to live!"

Obediently, the stranger followed behind Seto, letting him guide her through the hole in the fence before finally crawling through himself

"You just _had_ to do it, didn't you?" Marik huffed, eyes rolling, but Seto didn't care

He just cared about getting them all out of there

And by the grace of whatever gods may be out there, the med van that Marik had first arrived in earlier was parked right outside, waiting on them

The doors opened, Ishizu clearly waiting on them, and as Seto pushed Atem inside and stepped into the van himself, for the first time that night, he felt a sense of releif


	5. Oh I'm A Guilty One, And Know What I Have Done

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter Title: "Guilty" by Marina And The Diamonds https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qIlFXh8hlZU

_"Good morning,"_

_He felt at peace_

_Despite how anxious and frustrated and stressed he usually was, today, right now, he felt at peace_

_And it was all because of Atem_

_His lips stretched out into a soft smile, his eyes warm and gentle as he leaned in closer and gave Atem a soft, slow kiss_

_"Good morning," he hummed softly, his eyes full of light and affection_

_Atem reached out, carding his fingers slowly through Seto's hair as he leaned in and returned the kiss_

_For a moment, everything was quiet_

_The room was darker than it typically was in the mornings, Seto could hear the rain gently pelting down on the windows_

_It was so relaxing and serene....._

_It made him feel utterly at peace_

 

His hand curled softly but tightly around Atem's, giving it a squeeze as he leaned back and closed his eyes

He could hear the Ishtars chattering ahead of them, Yugi and Joey quietly murmuring to eachother and Atem explaining to the blue-silver-haired girl- Kisara, he learned- that he was a cop, that they were trying to help people, that she wouldn't be hurt as long as she was with them

And for the first time that night, Seto allowed himself to be quiet

He allowed himself to be quiet and still, to simply... _exist_ , without having to concentrate on playing the hero

He could just _exist_ for the first time all day or night

"Joey... do you know what happened? Do you know who did this to you?" Atem asked after a moment

Seto didn't bother opening his eyes, but he did start paying a little bit more attention

"Yeah, my fuckin' father,"

That was finally enough to make Seto give up his full attention to the blonde, his eyes opening and his back straightening a little bit more in alertness

"What...?"

"The old man.... he's in some pretty steep debt, way I understan' it, he sold me to this shit show to clear some o' it, he might've done it to save his own ass, I ain't all that sure, but ... he told 'em where I'd be, I heard 'em talkin' 'bout it," Joey shrugged, leaning back against the wall of the van and exhaling slowly

"Oh Jo... I- .. I'm so sorry..." Yugi breathed

"Don't apologize Yug, you're the one who came an' found me, if anybody should never have t' apologize for anythin' ever again, it'd be you,"

" _Ahem_ ," Seto frowned, his eyes narrowing in response to that

"Yeah yeah, you too Rich Boy, an' o'course 'Tem,"

"Still though.... that"s pretty terrible Joey," Atem said slowly

"Yeah well... what're ya' gonna do?"

At that moment, the van abruptly stopped, and Marik pushed the van doors open

"Well as much as I'd love to get in on the Fathers Are Fuckers discussion, I'm afraid if you five want to get to New Zealand, I'll need to get you a ride," he noted, turning to stare at Atem over his shoulder and smirking at him

"You _so_ owe me, Officer,"

Atem rolled his eyes, but moved behind Marik and stepped out of the car, holding a hand up in front of Seto when the CEO naturally tried to follow

"You're right, Ishtar, I do, why don't you let me discuss the terms of said owing wile you commit grand theft auto hm?"

Seto frowned, confused as the doors were shut in front of his face

That was odd...

There was a weird, anxious feeling bubbling in the pit of his belly, and something in Seto told him that this was wrong, but he didn't know what, and he didn't know if he should trust it or not

Atem would be fine, he figured

They'd just stepped into a car lot, and Marik was with him, they both had guns and the grounds were empty....

Seto had nothing to worry about

Right?

"Um... excuse me?"

Turning his attention to the meek, soft voice, he slowly sat back down, his focus now on Kisara

"I just... I just wanted to thank you for helping me, and... ask why you did, there were so many people there... why me?"

Seto thought about that for a moment, head tilting to the side, before finally providing an answer

"I honestly have no idea,"

"Wow Kaiba, way t' be brutally fuckin' honest,"

"I'm sorry Wheeler, should I have lied?" Seto snipped back

Joey rolled his eyes, but was apparently too exhausted to argue further

"So Kisara, do you have any family?" Yugi asked, deciding to save this .... "discussion".... from going _completely_ down the hill

"O-Oh um, afraid not, it's just me," she replied quietly

"Well ya've got family now!" Joey insisted with a grin, wrapping an arm around her shoulders

"We're Purge Pals, all us in this van!"

"Please never use that phrase ever, _ever_ again," Seto frowned flatly

Joey's eyes narrowed, he was clearly preparing to say something, but the doors opened again before he could, revealing Marik before them

"Alright Bitch Brigade, as fun as this 'fighting for our lives' thing has been, I've got to get to get to the Ketsueki Matsuri, and if you all don't get on that plane soon, there'll probably be no point in going to New Zealand to hide out,"

Marik had a point, as it was, they wouldn't even get to the island before Purge Night ended, but atleast they'd spend the next ten hours in the air and over international waters instead of in the heart of the violence...

Seto gave him a breif word of thanks before climbing out, peering around the corner for Atem and finding with surprise that he was already in the driver's seat of a bright red sports car

Strange...

There was a black SUV right next to it with the doors open, why did they hot-wire two different cars?

Seto hurried to get in front of the red car, wich apparently took Atem by surprise given the look on his face

The others were already being directed to the black car, but Seto didn't care, he hurriedly yanked open the passenger door and slid in the front seat, smiling tiredly at his partner

"Are we leading the pack?"

Atem was frowning, he looked ... _sad_

........

_Fuck_

"I'm sorry Seto-"

"No,"

"Marik should have tol-"

"NO,"

"You're not coming with m-"

"NO!" Seto growled, hurriedly locking his door- as if that would somehow do anything- before glaring at his fiance'

"Don't. You. DARE. Try to make me leave, what the fuck are you doing!?"

"I just have.... one quick thing I need to do before we leave, please Seto-"

"Then I'm coming with you,"

"Seto-"

"I'm not asking,"

His jaw was tense, his eyes narrowed, but he said nothing more

"Put your fucking seatbelt on,"

 

_"Put your fucking seatbelt on!"_

_Blinking in surprise, Seto turned to face his lover, eyebrows raised, definitely taken aback_

_"Seto, are you listening to me?"_

_"I- ... um...."_

_Atem sighed heavily, eyes rolling as he reached over with one hand and grabbed the seatbelt, yanking it slowly but firmly across his lover's body and clipping it in_

_"You don't wear seatbelts, I take it?"_

_He felt like this was a trick question, but he slowly shook his head all the same_

_"Well you're about to start,"_

_Seto felt it was a little odd that he had only been dating the cop for a few weeks, they had only just started their ... more sexual ... dynamic a matter of days before, and yet already Atem had found himself so comfortable in giving him orders- even outside of the bedroom- and Seto felt so comfortable following them_

_"Sorry for yelling," Atem said a beat later, his hand moving to gently place his hand on Seto's thigh and give it a squeeze_

_"I just hadn't noticed you weren't wearing it and when I swirved to avoid that squirrel- .... I just care about you, that's all, I don't want you to get hurt,"_

_That was the first time he had ever heard those words from someone who wasn't blood related, and Seto knew immediately, in that moment, that he would do absolutely anything to hear them again, he would never get tired of it_

_He would want to hear them for the first of his life_

_And, specifically, he wanted to keep hearing them from **Atem**_

_Leaning back, he exhaled peacefully and found himself feeling strangely relaxed as Atem drove, even after he removed his hand from his thigh_

_It was weird but... if Atem wanted him to wear his seatbelt, he'd never go without wearing it ever again_

 

"I'll be back in a moment,"

"You've got to be fucking kidding me,"

Atem frowned, clearly feeling guilty as Seto glared at him

"Please, sweetheart, just give me ten minutes, ok? Just ten minutes, and if I'm not back by then, I promise, you can come and look for me,"

"You say that as if I wasn't already going to," Seto grumbled back

"Won't you atleast tell me what we're doing here?"

Atem shook his head slowly, giving him a gentle kiss on the cheek before sliding out of the car

"I'll be right back, I swear it,"

Seto didn't want him to leave

He didn't want to let Atem out of his sight

But he knew Atem wouldn't give on this one, and he didn't want to spend any more time out here on Purge night than he absolutely had to

And before Seto could consider any other options, the door was shut, and Atem was gone

They were parked outside of a ratty old apartment building, Seto was personally _shocked_ that the entire street wasn't crawling with Purgers, but he supposed, looking at all of the debris and wreckage that was scattered out all over the place, that perhaps they had already hit

He couldn't imagine what Atem wanted at this place, but ...

Forcing himself to breathe, he glanced at his watch, nose wrinkling

The Purge had started three hours ago, give or take a little, and he was starting to feel more and more like Marik was right

The trip to New Zealand was starting to feel pointless, but... he'd reserved the hotel for the entire week, there was no sense in them _not_ going, especially with another nine hours of bullshit to go

Rubbing his face, he watched as the watch hands ticked down once more, feeling his stomach begin to churn

Four minutes....

That was close enough to ten

He rushed out of the car, his heart racing with anxiety as he hurried to the doors of the apartment building, eyebrows raising in slight surprise as he noted that the door was already open

Eyes narrowed, he reached into his belt and drew his gun, swallowing tightly as he started slowly into the apartment building

It was only a few steps in, however, that the sound of a gun firing the second floor up went off, and fear filled every inch of him

_Atem..._

He raced to the stairs, not even bothering with the elevator as he hurried up the first flight and down the hall, coming to a pause when he saw his boyfreind standing outside of an open apartment door

"Atem!?"

Slowly, the cop turned around, his gun lowering, blood splattered against him, fresher than what had been there before, and as Seto stepped closer, he finally saw why

There was a corpse laying in the doorway

Bullet holes in the body

He slowly looked up at Atem, his face depicting the clear dread and distress that he felt, watching as the officer took a step closer to him

"He had to die, Seto," Atem said quietly

"After what he did to Joey.... don't get me wrong, this wasn't just about revenge, it's about prevention, think about it, he's not going to stop what he's doing, he won't quit gambling, what's going to stop him next year from selling Joey again? Or Serenity? Or _both_? I am saving their lives, Seto,"

He stepped closer to his lover, leaning up on the tips of his toes and wrapping his arms around Seto's neck, hugging him tightly, pressing a kiss to his cheek

"It had to be this way.... you understand, don't you?"

"Yes," Seto replied quietly, his head pressing into Atem's shoulder, his arms wrapping around his back

"I understand.... you had to do what you had to do..... we _all_ have to do what we have to do, sometimes..."

 

_"We all have to do what we have to do sometimes, this isn't my first choice, but it's what I'm left with, nobody expected the little brat to surpass me like this, the only thing we can do now is get rid of him, him and his brother both,"_

_Those words haunted Seto_

_He had heard them the day before, and they had been plaguing him ever since_

_It wasn't bad enough that his adopted father wanted to kill Seto, but the fact that he wanted to kill Mokuba too...._

_That was what crossed the line_

_So there he stood, at the tender age of fifteen, with a gun in his hand, and blood on his clothes and a body in front of him_

_**He did what he had to do to protect his brother** _

_"Mr. Kaiba-?"_

_Slowly, Seto looked up, turning his attention to the door, to the shocked look on Isono's face as his father's assistant stared at the bloody scene in front of him_

_"You can turn me in, Isono," Seto said quietly, his eyes shifting back down to the body on the ground_

_"Mokuba is safe now, that's .... all I care about, that's all that matters, so .. if you want to turn me in I wouldn't blame you,"_

_Isono stepped forward, and carefully shut the door behind him_

_"I don't know what you're talking about... Mr. Kaiba,"_

_~+~_

_Seto had owed him for that_

_He still owed him for that, even now_

_For cleaning up the mess, keeping the secret, standing by Seto's side......._

_**"The home invasion death of Gozaburo Kaiba, one of the richest men in Japan, has lawmakers pushing for Japan to adopt the annual night of violence that has been steadily growing more popular across the Americas and Europe known as The Purge, the United States first set the idea up nine years ago and has experienced a steady decrease in violence and even a better economy ever since, currently there are twelve countries internationally that practice annual purging, with China and North Korea so far being the only Asian countries to install the night, two and three years ago respectively, China has perhaps seen the biggest benefits from the Purge, with crime rates plummeting by 80% last year, now the question is raised, after the assassination of one of Japan's biggest billionaires, will the Land Of The Rising Sun be the next country to adopt the annual Purge?"** _

_Seto hurriedly turned the TV off, wrapping his arms around his legs and pulling them up to his chest_

_This was his fault_

_Japan was going to create a night full of violence and crime and sin and murder ....._

_And it was **all** his fault......_

 

~+~

 

_"Japan's annual Purge is officially over, though it will still take days to tally up the total losses, reports are already coming in that this year's Purge was the most successfull yet, as always, the most highly reported act committed during the Purge is murder, with a wopping 73% of the crimes committed, the numbers are once again inspiring non-Purging countries such as Ireland, South Korea, and Australia to consider becoming Purge Sanctuary countries, places such as Canada, New Zealand, and Germany have officially signed an international treaty swearing to never adopt the Purge, and to host Purge refugees during the bloodiest nights of the year, initially against the idea of Purging, Japan adopted the night of violence seven years ago, officially signing it into law one year after the death of wealthy weapons mogul Gozaburo Kaiba, who was killed in a home invasion fol-"_

The TV went off, and Seto slowly looked over his shoulder, taking note of the towel-draped cop next to the bed

"That's enough of that, don't you think sweetheart?" Atem asked softly, setting the remote on the nightstand and crawling into bed, not even bothering to take off his towel

"The shower is ready, this room has a pretty huge bathroom, don't you want to see it?"

Seto nodded slowly, leaning up and giving Atem a gentle, sweet kiss

"Good, then come with me, when we're done, we can watch a movie, ok? Anything you want,"

"Yes, Your Majesty," the CEO said softly, following Atem out of bed and sighing peacefully as the officer reached up to slowly stroke his thumb against Seto's cheek, a soft, warm look on his face

"I'm sorry tonight went so awry Seto.... but I kept my promise, didn't I?" he asked quietly, leaning up on the tips of his toes and wrapping his arms around his lover's neck, giving him a tight, squeezing hug

"As long as I'm around, I will always, _always_ , protect you.. my love,"


End file.
